Espace is operationally positive in the first half of 2023
The real estate holding company reported an operating profit for the period of CHF 9.6 million, which is CHF 9% more than in the same period of the previous year.
Espace Real Estate Holding is very satisfied with its performance in the first half of 2023. At CHF 9.6 million, operating profit for the period was up 9% on the previous year (CHF 8.8 million), the company announced.
The revaluation gain on real estate amounted to CHF 0.3 million after CHF 3.0 million in the first half of 2022. According to the company, the profit for the period including revaluations and income from sales thus amounted to CHF 9.8 million, which is CHF 2.0 million less than in the previous year (CHF 11.8 million).
The vacancy rate for investment properties fell from 4.7% to 2.9% within the space of a year. Rental income increased by CHF 7.2% to CHF 18.9 million (previous year: CHF 17.6 million). According to Espace, the completion of two renovation projects in Zuchwil and Derendingen with a total of 93 fully let apartments and the acquisition of a property in Zuchwil contributed to this. In the first half of the year, the company also began adjusting rents due to the rise in the reference interest rate and index-linked commercial rental agreements.
Further growth in rental income expected
Espace expects a further increase in rental income in the second half of the year due to the fully let first stage of Amselweg 43 and Lerchenweg 26 in Zuchwil (41 apartments) and the letting of the last spaces in a commercial property in Biel. A healthcare property under construction in Burgdorf will be ready for occupation in November and has already been let, Espace added. In addition, several rental agreements for the vacant commercial space at the train station in Solothurn are about to be concluded, Espace said.
In Biel, construction has begun on the final stage of the Visavie quarter (76 apartments and a care area), and a new building application with 41 apartments has also been submitted in Grenchen. A renovation project with 75 apartments and the project development in Beringen (SH) with 30 apartments are also progressing. The acquisition of a further "healthcare property/doctor's house" with an associated land reserve for residential construction in the Solothurn area is nearing completion.
Espace expects a higher operating profit for the year as a whole than in the previous year. In 2022, the company made a profit of CHF 18.2 million. (ah)
